


No One Is Alone

by FaerieTales4ever



Series: Kaimo Ko Tango [1]
Category: Wicked - All Media Types
Genre: F/F
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2014-12-17
Updated: 2014-12-17
Packaged: 2018-03-01 20:12:36
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 3,879
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/2786177
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/FaerieTales4ever/pseuds/FaerieTales4ever
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Tired of being looked at as a villain and living life on the run, Elphaba contemplates surrendering to the Witch Hunters when they come for her, but a certain bouncy blonde gives her hope in the darkness. Gelphie! Inspired by the song No One Is Alone from Into The Woods.</p>
            </blockquote>





	No One Is Alone

**Author's Note:**

> A/N: Here's the other o/s I promised! Another Gelphie, because I caught the shipping bug and can't seem to stop :) Enjoy!
> 
> Summary: Tired of being looked at as a villain and living life on the run, Elphaba contemplates surrendering to the Witch Hunters when they come for her, but a certain bouncy blonde gives her hope in the darkness. Gelphie! Inspired by the song No One Is Alone from Into The Woods.
> 
> Disclaimer: I'm not Gregory MaGuire, Stephen Schwartz or any of the amazing people who made Wicked possible, I'm just playing around with my favorite musical!

**No One Is Alone**

Elphaba paced the steps of Kiamo Ko. She clenched her fists at her sides, but they refused to stop shaking.  She couldn’t believe it had actually come to this. All she’d been trying to do was protect the Animals, to speak out for them as none had spoken for her. She’d learned a long time ago that no good deed went unpunished, but the fact that it had gone so far… She’d only been trying to right her own wrong, and she’d lost everyone she loved in the process. Doctor Dillamond, Nessa, Boq, Fiyero… Oz, Fiyero. The memory of him crying out for her as they dragged him to the cornfields still haunted her nightmares. Her biggest regret was not having been able to save him. Well, that and… 

_ No! You can't think about her. They’ll see right past it if you do. You can't allow them to use her as a weapon.  _

The green girl bit back the sudden burn of tears. Of all the wrongs she’d done over the years, leaving Galinda was the one that failed to stop stinging. Even though she knew her friend would be well taken care of after she was gone, it didn’t stop her heart from nearly bursting in despair knowing she would never see her again. She’d never hear her laugh, or see her eyes light up at the thought of yet another party or frivolous social gathering, never wipe her tears, or finally feel their lips mold together like she’d wanted for Oz knew how long… She’d never even get the chance to tell Glinda how she felt. After tonight, everyone in Oz would think her dead. And for her own safety, Glinda would have to think that too. 

A few tears traced their way down the girl’s shining cheeks, but she sniffed and wiped them away. Now wasn’t the time to reminisce about what could’ve been. More than ever she had to be strong. If she couldn’t, everything would fall apart, and she’d spend the rest of her days on the run. 

Elphaba sighed and squared her shoulders as she descended the stairs. She knew the Ozian’s would come looking for her in Dorothy's holding cell, eager to rescue the innocent little Kansas girl and her whiny dog from the vile and demonic Wicked Witch of the West. Surely, they would expect to find her torturing the brat, and while she fully intended not to harm her, she saw no reason not to give the villagers the show they expected. Just as she put her pointed heel on the first step, however, she heard movement from the other stairwell. 

The witch froze, paralyzed, as she listened to the shoes shuffle swiftly down the steps. They’d found her. 

She stumbled over her own feet, her breathing came in shallow gasps as she felt herself back against the cold, onyx crevice of the castle wall. 

_ Don't panic, Elphaba. You’re not going to die here. I won't have it. _

Except…How was she supposed to survive?

Her only escape plan lay down in the dungeon with Dorothy, and there was no way she could make it from where she stood now. If she didn’t do something fast, she’d be hopelessly trapped, rendered defenseless at the mercy of the Gale Force and Witch Hunters. 

But what could she do?

She didn’t want to magic them. She was many things, but she wasn’t a killer. She wouldn’t risk letting her powers loose, even in such a dire situation as this. 

A jagged, silver dagger with a bronze, emerald encrusted handle glinted at her from her work table. 

_ Thank Oz!  _ She’d forgotten she’d pillaged the knife off of an unconscious guard after rescuing a family of Tigers from the Emerald City Jail last week. She inched over to it and gripped the hilt, slinking back into the shadows only when it was secured in her grasp. She clutched the weapon to her chest and waited with baited breath as the footsteps inched nearer to her chambers. 

 

***

Glinda galloped through Oz as fast as the steed would carry her. Normally, she would’ve taken her bubble, but that had been designed for glamor, not speed. Still, even with the most nimble horse in the palace, could she make it to Kiamo Ko in time?

She had to try. Morrible had let this Wicked Witch business go on for far too long, and she was too consumed in her own greedy desire for power to do anything to stop it. 

Glinda quelled a scream of frustration. It hadn’t been so long ago when she and that horrid woman actually had more in common than she was willing to admit. She’d always been raised to rise above things, to never stop fighting for what she wanted, and always look for a new way to get ahead. When Elphaba flew off all those years ago, alone and afraid from the attic of the Emerald Palace, she’d tried to convince herself she’d done the right thing by staying behind. That it wasn’t just for her own good, but for Elphaba’s too. She tried to rationalize that she would’ve only burdened her, as she hadn’t a clue how to survive on her own. 

A week later, the Wizard honored her with the title Glinda the Good, and praised her for warning the good people of Oz to the danger that was the Wicked Witch of the West. The blonde told herself that it was all for the best, that she was doing what was right for Oz… But there was nothing she’d regretted more than letting her go that day. She missed Elphaba more than words could express. With each passing year, the gaping hole in her heart only grew larger. For as many people who claimed to love her, none could replace the deep bond she shared with her best friend; her Elphie. 

And that day at Nessa’s funeral… The hurt, the pure hatred that had radiated from every pore of her beautiful emerald body as tears of grief quickly morphed into blazing anger… The memory continued to haunt Glinda’s every waking moment. She still didn’t know what had possessed her to give Morrible the idea to use the younger Thropp against Elphaba; the notion that her petty obsession with Fiyero- even though everyone could tell he didn’t love her- had ultimately caused the death of her best friend’s sister’s still left a bitter taste in her mouth.

Now she had one final chance to redeem herself, to live up to the title that had been bestowed upon her so long ago. She’d failed Elphaba so many times before; she was not going to do so again. 

After many hours of traveling, Glinda finally arrived at the gates of Kiamo Ko castle. She slid off her horse, thanking Lurline that she’d somehow been fast enough to beat the Gale Force and the Witch Hunters. She hurried past the gates and up into the castle chambers, hoping she could find the elusive green girl before anyone else arrived. 

 

***     

Elphaba heard the click clack of stilettos change from a loud, ringing sound that ricocheted off the hollow, glittering brick of the palace walls to a softer shuffle as they skirted ‘cross the concrete floor of her room. She held her breath from behind the black, gossamer curtain where she hid.

Elphaba found it odd that whoever had discovered her castle wasn’t tearing down the building brick by brick as they searched for her. There were no blood thirsty shrieks of her name, or shattering sounds of breaking glass as they destroyed her workspace. She doubted it was the Witch Hunters; they were far too violent and not at all cunning enough to sneak around. They lusted only for blood; they wouldn’t hold this person’s composure as they crept about. No, their entrance, much like that of the Gale Force, would be immensely more pronounced than whoever was stalking her now. Even so, she wasn’t taking any chances. As soon as she saw a blur of shimmering blue fabric slink by her hiding spot, she drew back the curtain and sprang into the open, raising the dagger high above her head. 

“You may have caught me,” she cackled. Her eyes were wild and crazed, and her breathing labored. “But I don’t intend to go down without a fight.”

The figure, a woman dressed in a flowing blue gown with a full bubble skirt, whirled around with an alarmed shriek. “El- Elphie?”

The witch staggered back, the knife slipping from her grip and clattering to the floor with a metallic  _ clang _ . 

_ What in Oz? _

Elphaba reached forward with a trembling hand, fingering the sheer fabric of the other girl’s dress. When the pads of her skin finally came in contact with rough, netted fabric, it still seemed like a cruel, heartless dream. 

_ Get a grip, Elphaba! This isn’t real. It’s impossible. She can't be here . She's just a mirage. A spirit come to soothe you in your final moments. You can't actually be seeing... _

“Gl- Glinda?” 

“Oh, Elphie! Thank Oz!” Glinda launched herself forward, latching onto her neck and nearly knocking Elphaba to the ground. “I was so afraid I wouldn’t make it here in time! I thought they’d…” She choked on a sob. “Oh, Elphaba. I’m so, so, sorry! This is all my fault! Oh, thank Oz I found you!”

 In a daze, the witch stepped back, unwinding her arms from their grip around her neck as she lowered the shorter girl to her feet and held her at arm's length. Tears danced in her eyes and a few trickled over the edge onto her pale cheeks. 

“Oh, Elphie…” 

“Glinda…”  _ How is this possible? “ _ Wh… What are you  _ doing  _ here?”

Glinda’s eyes turned the shade of an overcast sky before a coming storm. She threw an anxious glance over her shoulder and clasped her friend’s hands. “You mean you don’t know?” 

“...Know what?”

“Elphie, the Witch Hunters, Morrible, they’re coming for you. They mean to... “ Her voice hitched. “They mean to kill you,” she rasped out. She turned and scurried to the staircase, pulling Elphaba behind her. “Quickly now, I have a horse out back. We have to go. We have to get you out of here.”

_ Oh, Glinda.  _ The green woman’s eyes stung at the passionate concern lacing her voice. No one had spoken to her with that much kindness since Shiz, and it made her heart swell to hear it. For one fleeting moment, she contemplated hopping on the back of that horse with her and fleeing the castle as fast as it could carry them. But as quickly as the thought surfaced, she dismissed it. Doing so would only succeed in dragging Glinda’s name through the mud as the fugitive who helped the Wicked Witch escape, not to mention prolong her miserable and terrifying existence on the run. She couldn’t do that to her best friend, and she didn’t want it for herself either. Digging her heels into the ground, Elphaba shook her head and unclasped the blondes fingers from where they surrounded her own. “I’m not going with you.”

_ What?  _ Glinda’s spun on her heel. “Elphie?” she whispered. “Wh- What do you mean? If you stay here, they’ll kill you!”

The witch sighed. She wished so desperately that Glinda’s last glimpse of her didn’t have to be of her supposedly surrendering in defeat. That she didn’t have to leave her here, looking so alone and fragile; that she had some other option but to follow through with this horrid plan to venture out into a new world with no other ally but herself. 

That is, assuming the plan worked at all. If it didn’t… Well then, at least Glinda wouldn’t be left to mourn a lie. 

“I’m tired of running, Glin,” she told her. “Morrible and the Wizard were right all along; I haven’t been doing anything to help the Animals. I’ve become a monster, and it’s time to put this to an end.”

Glinda’s eyes widened at the hollowness that echoed in her words. She couldn’t believe her best friend, who had lost so much,  _ survived  _ so much, would surrender now, after she’d fought so hard. “El- Elphaba, what are you saying?”

Elphaba hefted a big brown bucket onto the floor. Glinda saw droplets of water slosh over it’s brim, but it's purpose was meaningless. “I’m saying, it’s time to give the Ozians’ what they want. They want to kill me? Let them. A life on the run isn’t much of a life anyway.”

Galinda gasped. Her palm flew  to cover her mouth and tears blurred her vision. “Elphie!” She sobbed. “You can’t just let them….” 

Elphaba wrapped her in a strong hug, closing her eyes and relishing in the feeling of Glinda’s body against her own. If this was the final human contact she was ever to have, she would make this one moment last a lifetime. “You’re the only friend I’ve ever had,” she whispered. 

Glinda cried harder against her. “And I’ve had so many friends…” She looked up and forced Elphaba to meet her gaze. “But only one… that mattered.” 

Elphaba smiled before moving away and drying her eyes. She ushered Glinda back toward the stairs and motioned for her to climb. “Go. You can't be found here! You must go.”

Glinda stood there, still clinging to the green girl. She bit her lip as she glanced between Elphaba’s heartbroken face and the long spiral of stone stairs. The lines that creased her features proved that the harsh cruelties of this world had taken their toll, but Glinda refused to lose faith. She wasn’t going to abandon her now., she wasn’t going to leave her alone to face her last moments in the darkness of these chambers. She couldn’t go back out into the world again, if Elphaba was no longer in it. “No. I’m not leaving you.”

The witch’s eyes flashed and she prayed her enemies wouldn’t show up until she knew Galinda was safe. “You  _ must _ .” 

Glinda stood her ground. “No! Elphie, I’m done bowing to the Wizard. I’ll clear your name, I’ll go to the people, I'll tell them everything! They’ll have to believe me!”

“No!” The sorceress shook her shoulders in alarm. “They'll only turn against you.”

“I don't care!” Glinda screeched as tears poured down her cheeks. 

“I do!” Promise me,  _ promise _ me, you won't try to clear my name.  _ Promise _ .”

“I can’t, Elphie. I can’t lose you!”

“Glinda, please! You have to go. I need to know you’re safe. I won’t let them hurt you!”

“And _ I  _ won’t let them kill you!”

“Glinda-”

“Ozdammit Elphaba,” the blonde seethed. “I love you!”

The words ricocheted off the hollow brick and echoed in Elphaba’s ears. Her mind reeled and she stumbled back, looking at the blonde with wide, stunned sable eyes. “You…  _ what?”  _ she breathed. 

“I said I love you, you daft green thing,” Glinda giggled and came over to wrap her arms around the taller girl’s waist. “I have ever since Shiz.”

"But you… You're an Upland…You're Glinda the Good… You were engaged to Fiyero, and he's dead because of me. How could you ever… ?" Try as she might, Elphaba simply couldn't wrap her mind around that notion. She'd known her own feelings for a long time, but Glinda had never shown the slightest interest- or she' never noticed it before. She always seemed to be obsessed with the Vinkin prince. What to wear around him, the parties they were attending, their engagement. After everything she’d done, after all the fights they’d had since she’d left her in that blasted attc of the Emerald Palace, to hear that she loved her… it was simply unfathomable. 

  Glinda stepped closer to her friend, grabbing one of her hands and caressing her knuckles with her thumb. “I never loved him, you know,” she whispered. “I tried to, for my parents, for my reputation. I didn’t want to admit to myself, or anyone else, that what I really wanted for my life, was pretty much the exact opposite of what was expected of me.”

“Glinda…”

“It was you, Elphie. Always you. I was insane trying to convince myself otherwise.”. 

Elphaba found herself stunned into silence.“Glin, I…” She stopped. “I love you too,” she finally confessed, embarrassed to meet the other girl’s gaze. 

“You… You do?” the blonde gasped, and Elphaba looked up. Her lips morphed into an unbelieving smile when she found the blonde’s eyes shining in delight. 

“I do,” she murmured. “But that's exactly why you have to leave.”

“Wha-”

“Glinda-” she clasped the blonde’s pale hands in her own. “You said yourself they’re coming for me. They want my blood. They want to burn me at the stake for what I’ve done, Glin. And if you stay…” She trailed off. “I couldn’t stand the thought of another person getting hurt because of me, least of all you.  _ Please, _ ” she squeezed her hands in desperation, “try to understand that.”

“I do.” Glinda looked her in the eye. “But  _ you  _ need to understand that I’m not letting you face this alone.”

“But-”

“No buts. I just got you back, Elphaba Thropp, I’m not leaving you again.”

“Glinda… You don’t realize what you’re asking for.. Aligning yourself with me… it could cost you your  _ life _ .  _ Please _ , think this through.”

“I have. I can’t imagine my world without you Elphaba. If we die, we die together.” On impulse, she leaned forward and kissed the witch. 

Elphaba was rendered speechless. She brought her hand up to her mouth. “You… You’re really willing to die for me?” she stuttered, unsure what else to say. Her mind had stopped forming understandable thoughts the minute Glinda’s soft, bubblegum pink lips came in contact with her own. 

“Of course,” Glinda whispered. “I love you.”

“I…” The green girl struggled to process such a genuine show of support. She hadn’t had that since before Nessa was born. “It’s just… “ she finally managed. “I’ve been alone and hated for so long. Everyone wants my head on a platter, Glin. I don’t even… “ She shook her head. 

Glinda came and slipped her arms around the green girl’s waist, resting her chin on the taller woman’s shoulder. “Oh Elphie. No one is ever truly alone. No matter how isolated you may feel, someone’s always on your side.”

“You really believe that?” the witch asked. 

“I can’t convince you not to surrender if that’s really what you want, but I’m determined to stand with you, no matter what you choose.”

The sorceress’s lip trembled at the sincerity of Glinda’s words. “Th- thank you, Glin. But… Are… Are you sure?” 

Glinda nodded. “That day in the palace, when you asked me to go with you, and I refused,” She bit her lip as her eyes welled with tears. “I left you, Elphie. I never regretted anything more.”

“But… You didn’t…”

“I did. And I’ve kicked myself for it ever since. I don’t intend to make the same mistake twice.”

You never made one the first time!” Elphaba protested. “I was wrong to ask you to come; this isn’t the life you deserve.” 

Glinda ignored her and instead began to sing softly in her ear. “Sometimes people leave you, whether or not they should.”

“But you were right.”

The blonde pretended not to hear, hugging the witch to her. “Others may deceive you.”

“More like everyone.”

“But, you decide what's good. You decide alone.”

“I tried, Glinda. But I guess I was wrong about that too.”

Glinda just smiled and hugged her friend. “People make mistakes.”

“Fathers,” The sorceress sneered, thinking of the beatings and criticism she’d suffered from the man who was supposed to care for her. 

“Mothers,” Glinda supplied, reminded of the way her parents harsh expectations had kept her from admitting her true feelings and desires until this very night. “People make mistakes. They’re holding to their own, thinking they're alone.”

“Sometimes they are.”

“But it doesn’t mean they’re wrong. Giving up won’t help anything. People need to know the truth.”

“If only they’d believe it.” 

“They will If I tell them.”

“How?’ 

“Just let them see you,” Glinda said simply. “ _ Really  _ see you, like I learned to, back at Shiz.”

Elphaba scoffed. “Yeah, a lot of good that would do,” 

Glinda surprised her with another kiss. “I believe it will.” she murmured  as she gave her hands a reassuring squeeze. “Witches can be right Wizards can do wrong. You decide what's right, You decide what's good. Just remember; someone is on your side.”

“And someone else is not,” the green girl said warily. “So, while you’re seeing our side, maybe you forgot; they are not alone.”

Well,” Glinda reasoned. “Neither are we. No one is alone.”

“Glinda... This is Morrible and the Wizard. All of Oz respects them. They lined up an army to hunt me dead! What have we got against that?” 

Glinda rested a hand on her shoulder, a fiesty light gleaming in her eyes. “As plain old Galinda and Elphaba,” she admitted, “not much.”

The witch nodded. “See? So it’s better not to fight. I’ve been battling them a long time, Glin. They can’t be beaten. We have to get you out of here before they come for me.” She gestured to the stairs again and tried to pull her friend forward, but the Good Witch dug in her heels. Elphaba glared at her, but Glinda’s smile only widened.

“As Glinda the Good and the Wicked Witch of the West, however,” she smirked and twirled her wand in the air as her friend stifled a laugh despite the seriousness of the situation before them, “we’ve got a lot.”  

Elphaba chuckled, but couldn’t keep her gaze from the doorr. “It’s a good plan, Glin, but….”

“Come on, Elphie!” she begged. “We at least have to try, don’t we?”

“Well….”

“I know it’s hard to see the light now; just don't let it go.”

“But Glin, what if… What if it doesn’t work?  Then I’ll just have more blood on my hands, and Oz will be no better for it.” She shook her head, and Glinda pulled her close. 

“Things will come out right now,” she promised. “We can make it so.” 

Elphaba begin to pace. “I know you want to believe that, but....” 

“Think of all the things we could do together if we manage to convince them! We could lift the Animal bans! We could give people their jobs back, their  _ livelihoods _ . We could reunite  _ families,  _ Elphie! Don’t you want that?”

The green girl groaned and threw up her hands. “Of course I do, Glinda!” she growled. “But I’ve been trying for  _ years _ ! Nothing works. They’re just too powerful.”

“For you, maybe. But not for  _ us _ .”

“Glinda… I just don’t know if I have the energy to fight again.”               

The Good Witch took her hand and smiled. “It won’t just be you this time though. This is my fight too.”

“Glinda…” 

“Someone is on your side. No one is alone.”

A ghost of a smile played on Elphaba’s lips. “Okay,” she finally relented. “Lets try.”

Glinda captured her in another kiss, and together, they waited in the darkness for the army to storm the castle. 


End file.
